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La Union Surfing, two unique seasons!

Where is La Union?

La Union is a province in the Ilocos Region, which is Region 1. It is in the north of the main island of Luzon and is on the west coast.

La Union surfing and in particular the province is bordered to the north with the province of Ilocos Sur and to the south by Pangasinan. On the eastern border is Benguent province and to the west is the South China Sea.

La Union is said to be the gateway to the Ilocos Region, is has become the business and financial centre of the region

There are any number of busses that will carry you from Manila to La Union province. The busses that will get you to La Union surfing are, Farinas Trans, Partas, Philippine Rabbit, Times Transit, Maria de Leon. They will take you about seven hours to get there. Some of the busses will go through to Laoag so you should be mindful to get off at San Fernando.

You can also always organize a mini bus for you to take you straight to La Union, it will cost you more but should be quicker, more comfortable and will take you directly to your hotel in San Fernando, La Union.

The Surfing

La Union Surfing is centred around the area both south and north of San Fernando. Where you go will really be dependant on the time of the year you go.

The season which has twp parts, quite unique for the Philippines, spans from July to October, waves are not nearly as consistent and from November to February, this is when the waves are bigger and more consistent due to the typhoon season providing bigger waves.

The surf is great for both novice and experienced riders alike and is never crowded, a good range of sites ensures this.

If you want to see what the surfing is like at La Union, have a look here at this video.

The pick of the La Union Surfing sites are:

DarigayosThis site is located out of the bay and would have to be the most consistent break around. You can always be guaranteed a right hander when all else is failing.

Poro PointYou can often see the waves breaking off the point onto the rocks, not the easiest to get to, in fact I’m not sure if you are allowed to travel in that area, maybe someone in the know can drop me a line.

The PointNice easy waves off the Monaliza Resort, b far the most popular surfing spot in La Union. Produces both lefts and rights, so it keeps both naturals and goofy’s happy.

Urbitztondo Beach BreakThe wave works both right and left with the left being the longer ride over a sand bottom.

Other spotsThere are numerous other spots littered up and down the coast from San Fernando. Waves can be caught on the coast from Tabok, Bacnotan, Cabaroan and also south of San Fernando off the airport and depending on time of year right down to Bauang.

Where do I stay?

There are plenty of resorts dotting the beach all around San Fernando. The pick would have to be where the more consistent waves are which is north of San Fernando and San Juan.

More information on La Union Philippines can be found in these links below: